Collar and collar fabric



; March 11, 1924; 1,486,703

.1. M. VAN HEUSEN COLLAR AND COLLAR FABRIC Caz- :1,

INVENTOR ATTORNEYS.

March 11', 1924.

J. M. VAN HEUSEN COLLAR AND COLLAR FABRIC Filed Feb. 6, 1922 s Sheets-Sheet 2 INV -TOR Y mm I B a own/M fa.

ATTORNEYJ' March 11 1924;

J. M. VAN HEUSEN COLLAR Arm COLLAR FABRIC Filed Feb 6. 1922 INVENTOR fl p Mew ATTORNEYs Patented Mar. 11, 1924,

UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN MANNING VAN HEUSEN', OF JAMAICA PLAIN, MAiSSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO VAN HEUSEN PRODUCTS, INC.. A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

COLLAR AND COLLAR FABRIC.

Application filed February 6, 1922.

T0 (17. whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN MANNIno VAN Hansen, a citizen of the United States. re siding at 33 Lakeville Place, Jamaica Plain, in the county of Norfolk. State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Collars and Collar Fabric; and i do hereby declare the following to be a full. clear, and exact description of the inventiv'in, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same.

This invention relates to improvements in folding collars made of heavy fabric, such as multiple ply interwoven fabric, and having a weakened line of fold or fold portion of increased flexibility therein, and includes the new collar fabric itself as well as collars made therefrom. More particularly. the invention relates to collars and collar fabric having a curvilinear fold portion of increased flexibility such that the collar when folded will take on a curvilinear set. The invention relates to improvements in collars of the character described and claimed in the Bowen U. 9:. Patent No. 1,254,306 and in the Morgan U. S. Patents Nos. l,25-l.339 and 1.254.340. all dated January 22, 1918.

The improved collars of the present invention. although provided with a curvilinear fold portion or line of fold, are made of a new fabric which can be woven under substantially the same tension without, however, weaving the fabric as a continuous curvilinear fabric.

In weaving the collar fabric in the specific manner illustrated and described in the said Morgan patents, the fabric as a whole is woven with a curvilinear weave so that the transverse or weft threads of the fabric are spaced apart a somewhat greater dis tance the outer edge of the curvilinear fabric than at the inner edge. The width of such a collar fabric is limited, since, if the fabric is of considerable width. and if the fabric as a whole is curvilinear, the transverse or weft threads will be much farther apart at the outer edge of the wide fabric thanat the inner. so that a noticeable difference in appearance will result, the

Serial No. 534,328.

or similar advantages, for use in collar manufacture. as collar fabric woven with a curvilinear weave. and the collars ma'de therefrom similarly present the same or similar advantages as collars made from such curvilinear fabric. Instead, however, of being woven as a curvilinear fabric, in the sense of a fabric in which the transverse or weft threads are further apart at the outer portion of the fabric than at the inner. the collar fabric of the present invention is woven with the transverse or weft threads substantially the same distance apart and substantially parallel to each other on both sides of the curvilinear fold portion. The longitudinal or warp threads, at the portion of the. fabric forming the fold portion of the collar. are curvilinear, while the longitudinal or warp threads of the fabric remote from the fold portion may be straight or may similarly be curved. From fabric so woven the collar can be cut with proper reference to the fold portion so that, when the collar is folded along the curvilinear fold portion, the collars as a whole will take on a curvilinear set, and both the inner and outer panels will be woven with an inherent curvilinear set, this curvilinear set being due. not to the increased spacing apart of the transverse threads on one side of the fold line, but to the displacement of the longitudinal or warp threads so as to give the desired curvilinear contour and so as to give to the collar as a whole the desired curvilinear set.

The present invention presents the advantage that the collar fabric may be woven as a straight fabric, either in a narrow fabric loom or in a broad fabric loom, so that it is unnecessary to weave and handle a fabric which as a whole is curvilinear in shape. Instead of being as a whole, curvilinear. the collar fabric of the present invention is made up of a series of fabric sections, each of which may be considered curvilinear and each of which 15 provided with a curvilinear told portion, so that the fabric as a whole is made up of a series or" curvilinear sections or sections having curvilinear fold portions woven therein.

The looms in which the new collar fabric is woven may in general be similar in their construction and operation to looms used in weaving multiply fabric of uniform weave, but the looms should be specially constructed to secure the desired variation from a uniform. weave. Instead of: using a reed with dents parallel to each other and uniformly spaced apart over the length of the reed, the reeds are specially constructed with their dents varying in their arrangement, and the reeds are arranged to be raised and lowered in timed relation with the take-up roll so as to cause periodic variations in the spacing apart of the longitudinai or warp threads at successive portions of the fabric being woven. The arrangement of the dents in the reed can be varied. In the case of a narrow fabric having a width somewhat greater than that oi"- the desired collar, the dents at the ends of the reedmay be parallel and vertical, the dents at or near the middle of the reed inclined and having the maximum departure from the vertical, and with the intermediate dents progressively varying from vertical at the ends to the maximum inclination at or near the middle. lVhen such a dent is used. and is raised and lowered during the weaving operation, the central threads will be displaced laterally a greater or less distance, while the longitudinal. threads at the edges oi the fabric will remain parallel. By regulation of the movement of the reed, the dis placement of the central longitudinal threads which go to make up the intermediate fold portion of the fabric can be regulated to give a curvilinear contour of the desired degree of curvature; while by a periodic raising and lowering; of the reed, the fabric can be woven with series of such fold portions, thus providing a series of successive portions of the straight fabric, each adapted for the manufacture of acollac-therefrom. In the individual sections and in the collars made therefrom, the transverse threads will be substantially parallel and spaced apart siiibstantially the same dis tance. throughout their length, while the longitudinal or warp threads will have their maximumdisplacement at the fold portion of the collar and will. have a gradually decreasing lateral displacement the further away they are from the fold portion.

The fabric of which the collars of the presentinvention are made may be, for eX- ample, a two ply interwoven fabric with or without an intermediate filling; thread layer. or a three-ply interwoven fabric. Fabricsof this kind have a considerable degree of inherent stiffness such that collars made thereaeavos lroni will tend to retain their shape and set without the use or any additional stifi:'- cnino; means. The collar will thus avoid presenting a flimsy or wrinkled appearance. and will. on the other hand, present an appearance which is finished and pleasing.

ln weaving the fabric in a broad loom, the reed can be made up 01 a series of sections, each oil which is the same or similar to the narro r reed above referred to, so that the fabric may have a width including a series of sections each suitable for the manufacture ,t a collar therefrom, the weaving operation being otherwise similar to that above de scribed.

Instead of weaving the individual collar blanl; sections at the fabric with the longitudinal. or warp threads substantially straight and parallel. at the outer edges and varying in displacement to that of maximum curvature at the fold line, the collar blanks as a whole may be woven with the longitudinal or warp threads displaced to the same extent throughout the width of the collar blank section as they are at the fold line, so that the collar blank sections have curved longitudinal threads of substantially uniform curva tiu'e but have transverse or welt threads substantially parallel. in wearing the collar blanlr sections in this way, the longitudinal. spaces between the collar blank sections (where the Fabric is of a width corresponding to two or more sec tions) and the 'tabric at its edges (beyond the collar blank sections) may be so woven as to make the outside longitudinal threads oi? the fabric substantially straight and the fabric at the edges of the collar blanks, and

the longituijlinal spaces between the collar blanks, may be woven with the longitudinal threads displaced progressively a maximum and ininimun'i distance in conformity with the d gree of proximi or remoteness oi the cur. .sneur collar blanlr section from the edge of the fabric.

In weaving the fabric, whether o1. a width suitable for single collar or a width suitable for a series of collars. the different secsms from which the collars are to be cut may be separated. from each other by a narrow portion of fabric oi": modified weave, for example, by :lt'orming a weakened or thin portion transversely oi? the fabric between the successive collar olank sections or, in the of a wide fabric, providing lines or portions ot' modified weave between the ditlen ent longitudinal strips 01 fabric.

The invention will be further described in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows in perspective a finished collar embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 shows the collar unfolded and with the curvilinear fold portion indicated in dotted lines;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the collar taken on the line of Fig. 2 and illustrating conventionally one form of weave;

Fig. 4.- is an enlarged view taken transversely of a central portion of the fabric of Fig. 2 and illustrating in detail the weave of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 shows a narrow fabric from which the collar blanks may be cut, with the collar blanks indi ated thereon in dash and dot lines;

Fig. 6 shows a wide fabric of a width equal to that of several collar blanks and with the collar blanks indicated thereon;

Fig. 7 shows in a similar conventional and diagrammatic manner a suitable construction of a reed for use in weaving the narrow fabric of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 shows a modified construction of narrow fabric from which the collar blanks may be cut with the collar blanks indicated therein in dot and dash lines; and

Fig. 9 shows a modified construction of reed adapted for weaving the fabric of Fig. 8.

The collar illustrated in Figs. 1-4 is a onepiece folding or turn-down collar made up of the neckband portion 1 and the folding or turn-down portion 2, separated by a fold portion 3 of generally curvilinear shape or contour. The fabric illustrated is a two-ply interwoven fabric, the longitudinal or warp threads of the fabric being indicated at 5 and the transverse or weft threads at 6, with the interwoven threads for interweaving the upper and lower plies indicated at 4.

The edges of the collar may be bound in any suitable manner, for example, in the manner illustrated, by turning the edge of the fabric and applying a binding tape thereto in the manner shown.

A narrow fabric of which the collar blanks may be made is illustrated in Fig. 5. This fabric is a straight fabric in the sense that its edges are substantially straight and parallel, while the fabric as a whole is of uni form width. At the central portion of the fabric the longitudinal threads are laterally displaced and this displacement is gradual and progressive so that the fold portion 3 is of a curvilinear shape or contour of a regulated degree of curvature, and so that a series of curved portions are provided each corresponding to the curved fold portion of a collar. The general arrangement of the longitudinal and transverse threads is indicated in a somewhat diagrammatic manner in Fig. 5, the size of the threads being greatly exaggerated and their number greatly reduced, for purposes of illustration. The longitudinal threads indicated at 7 and 8 near the outer edges of the fabric are substantially parallel (although, of course, they are interwoven with the transverse threads) while the longitudinal threads at the fold portion 3 of the collar have a curvilinear contour and the intermediate threads at a point 9 have a curvilinear contour intermediate that of the fold portion 8 and the outer straight edge of the fabric.

In Fig (5 a wide fabric is shown such as can be woven in a broad fabric loom. the width of the fabric corresponding to that of several collars. The weaving of this fabric may be similar to that of the weaving of ths fabric of Fig. 5 with the wide fabric made up of a series of strips each having a width similar to that of the narrow fabric of Fig. These strips may be woven with an intermediate portion of modified weave 10 to separate the longitudinal strips from each other, as well as with t 'ansverse portions 11 of a similar character. so that the wide fabric can he out along the lines of demarcation thus provided and so that the sections thus cut will be properly related to the curvilinear fold portions of the fabric.

A suitable form of reed for weaving the narrow fabric of Fig. 5 is illustrated in Fig. 7. This reed is made up of the usual end frame members 12 and top and bottom frame members '13 and 14. Instead. however. of making the dents parallel and spacing them apart uniformly, they are specially arranged in the manner illustrated. The end dents 15 are substantially parallel and are vertically arranged. The dents 17 at the central portion of the reed have a maximum inclination from the vertical while the intermediate reeds vary gradually from the maximum inclination of the dents 17 to the vertical arrangement of the dents 15. The actual number of the dents will in practice be much larger than is indicated in Fig. 7, a few dents only being shown to illustrate the construction and arrangement. By using a reed of the character illustrated and by raising and lowering this reed a suitable distance in timed relation with the take-up roll of the loom. the longitudinal threads will be displaced to one side or the other of the fabric according as'the dents of the reed are inclined. The amount of lateral displacement and the degree of curvature of the fold portion can be varied by vary ing the maximum inclination of the dents at the center of the reed or by varying the throw of the reed. that is, the extent to which it is raised and lowered.

The fabric of Fig. 8 is a narrow fabric having a width somewhat greater than that of the collar. The collar blank section is outlined in dash and dot lines as well as the collar blank to be cut therefrom. The longitudinal threads throughout the width of the collar blank have a generally curvilinear contour corresponding to that of the fold line of the collar, the longitudinal or warp threads being displaced laterally in such a way that they have substantially the same lateral displacemci'it, and such that the displacement of the longitudinal threads increases and decreases progressively. Beyond the collar blank section, at the edges of the fabric, is a section which may be called a waste section in which the longitudinal threads vary from a straight or parallel arrangement at the edges of the fabric to a curvilinear arrangement at the edge of the collar blanlr section. The genoral contour of the longitudinal or warp threads is indicated in the light lines in lfi 8, while the transverse or weft threads which are substantially parallel are similarly indicated. By weaving waste sections, so-called, at the outer edge of the collar blanh tions (that is, beyond the place where the collar blank will he cut from the fabric) in the manner illustrated, a substantially uniform weave of the collar blank itself is secured.

A reed suitable for weaving the fabric of Fig. 8 is illustrated conventionally in Fig. 9. The end dents 20 are substantially vertical and parallel, while the dents at the intermediate portion of the reed, except near the ends, have a uniform inclination from the vertical, and the dents near the ends of the reeds vary from th inclined dents of the central portion to the vertical dents at the ends. By raising and lowering the reed a suitable distance in timed relation with the take-up roll of the loom the longitudinal threads will be displaced in the general manner illustrated in Fig. 8 and the amount of the displacement and the degree of curvature of the fabri can be varied by varying the uniform inclination of the intermediate dents. The longitudi :11 threads indicated at 22 in Fig. 8 as well as the fold portion 23, will be controlled by the intermediate dents 21, while the edge portions 24 and 25 of the fabric of Fig, 8 will be controlled by the end dents in'- termediate the dents E20 and the inclined dents 21.

In the weaving of the fabric the feeding of the longitudinal threads from the warp beam or beams, and the operation of the heddles, may be the same as in the weaving of a multiply fabric of uniform weave. The departure from a uniform weave will be made by the reed which is specially constructed and operated to that end. The shuttle and the take-up roll may operate in the usual way. The operation of the reed can be correlated with that of the take-up roll so that the reed will be raised and lowered during the weaving of a length of fabric corresponding to the complete fabric section of which the collar is to be made.

It will thus be seen that the approved collar of the present invention is character ized by a curvilinear fold portion or line of fold such that the collar will have a curvionwe linear set when folded and such that the neckband and folding portions of the collar will similarly have a curvilinear set, while the collar fabric as a whole may be considered to be a straight fabric which nevertheless possesses the advantages of a curvilinear fabric. The collar itself will similar ly possess the same or similar advantages as collars made from a curvilinear fabric, although the collars will depart somewhat in their actual construction from such collars, in the respects hereinbcforc indicated.

In the foregoing specification and in certain of the appended claims, I have used the term straight fabric. this term I mean to include any fabric, the edges of which are substantially straight and parallel and which when placed on a plane surface lies out flat and straight without buckling or curving and which, during its manufacture, is adapted to be taken up on the loom by ordinary cylindrical take-up rolls, thus obviating the necessity for conical or other specially designed rolls.

While I have illustrated and described one suitable form of weave and intcrweave of the fabric, I do not limit myself thereto, since variations can be made in the particular weave or in the particular method of weaving without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the accompanying claims.

I claim:

1. A collar fabric or collar of straight multiple ply interwoven fabric having a fold portion extending longitudinally of the fabric and beinglongitudinally curved in the plane of the fabric, the warp threads of the fabric on each side of and adjacent to the fold portion having the same curvilinear arrangement as the fold portion, and the weft threads of the fabric being parallel and uniformly spaced from each other.

2. A collar fabric of multiple ply interwoven fabric, said fabric being woven with straight edges and with a plurality of collar blank sections across the width of the fabric, each having a curvilinear line of fold of increased flexibility and the warp threads at the line of fold having asimilar curvature.

3. A collar fabric or collar of multiple ply interwoven fabric having its transverse or weft threads substantially parallel and having a longitudinal curvilinear fold portion woven therein, the longitudinal or warp threads near the edge fold portion having a similar curvature and those farth ,r away from the ed e fold portion having a less curvature.

i. A multiple ply interwoven collar fabric having a plurality of cu rvili near fold portions woven therein, the warp threads at the edges of the fabric being substantially straight and parallel and the warp threads having a maximum lateral displacement from that of the edge threads, at the fold portions, the intermediate threads varying in lateral displacement.

5. A multiple ply interwoven collar fabric or collar having a fold portion of increased flexibility WOVBH therein, the said fold portion having a curvilinear contour due to the varying laterally displaced position of the Warp threads at the fold portion of the fabric.

6. A collar blank having a longitudinally curvilinear fold portion Woven therein, the fabric being a heavy fabric with the warp threads at its edges substantially straight and having its longitudinal or Warp threads adjacent the curvilinear fold portion arranged with a similar curvature.

7. A collar made of straight fabric having the Warp threads at the fold portion of the collar in curvilinear arrangement in the dinally curvilinear edge fold portion, certain of the Warp threads at the fold portion of the collar being omitted to give increased flexibility, the warp threads of the fabric adjacent each side of the fold portion having a longitudinally curvilinear arrangement and the weft threads of the fabric being substantially parallel and uniformly spaced from each other.

In testimony whereof I aihx my s1gnature.

JOHN MANNING VAN HEUSEN. 

